About.com English as 2nd language
English for the Food Service Industry
This resource takes the approach of providing essential English skills for specific industries - in this case for the food service industry. It provides examples of phrases that will be necessary and links to grammar resources to help study the forms.
English for the Food Service Industry originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Thursday, July 29th, 2010 at 07:38:42.
What is a Gerund?
The gerund is also known as the 'ing' form of a verb. There are many important uses of the gerund (or 'ing' form) in English. This guide to the gerund discusses a wide range of English gerund usage.
For those of you who know the difference between the gerund and the infinitive, this verb form quiz will help you review which form to use based on the preceding verb.
What is a Gerund? originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Tuesday, July 27th, 2010 at 20:02:49.
Prepositional Phrases
Many students are under the impression that the test will be difficult.
Under the impression is an example of a prepositional phrase. Improve your knowledge of some of the most important and common combinations of prepositions used in English. These phrases are in standard usage and can not be altered. They are used to connect, explain and show the relationship between ideas and things.
Prepositional Phrase Reference Sheet
Prepositional Phrase Quiz - 1
Prepositional Phrase Quiz - 2
Prepositional Phrase Quiz - 3
Prepositional Phrases originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Monday, July 26th, 2010 at 09:12:25.
Can you find the mistake?
These three, short, upper level reading comprehension extracts contain a number of grammatical and vocabulary usage mistakes. See if you can spot the mistakes, when you are ready you can check your work on the follow-up answers and explanations page.
Can you find the mistake? originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Friday, July 23rd, 2010 at 10:37:34.
Telephoning in English
These telephoning English conversations can be used in the following ways:
- Use the entire telephoning English conversation in pairs to practice the situations.
- Use the separate telephoning English conversations with your role. The other role is taken away so that you can listen to your partner more carefully.
- Use the telephoning English conversations without your role once you have used the role plays a number of times. This will help you memorize common phrases used in typical telephoning English situations.
Telephoning English - Making a Doctor's Appointment
Telephoning English - Leaving a Message
Telephoning English - Making a Reservation for Dinner
Telephoning English - Telephoning School for your Child
Telephoning English - Asking a Question about a Bill
Feel free to print out these telephoning English situations for use in class, or share the telephoning conversations with your friends online. For example, you could call your friend on Skype, navigate to a telephoning English practice page and practice together by each taking a role, exchanging roles, and practicing a few times. Click on the following telephoning English conversations to begin.
Telephoning in English originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Wednesday, July 21st, 2010 at 05:28:25.
Writing Style
This series of four lessons is designed to help students become familiar with writing an essay in English. The first lesson is designed to give students an overview of basic essay writing style. The final three lessons focus on developing skills that are used when analyzing texts as the basis of their essays.
Basic Essay Writing Style
Developing a Character Analysis
Using Themes to Relate to a Story
Getting Ideas Organized
Writing Style originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Monday, July 19th, 2010 at 10:51:51.
Business English Dictations
Many users wrote me saying they enjoyed the dictations I've posted in the past. Here are seven dictations for intermediate to advanced level learners focusing on Business English. Each dictation is full of appropriate pauses to write things down, and is repeated twice.
These beginning level dictations focus on making sure you understand the basics.
Business English Dictations originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Friday, July 16th, 2010 at 09:16:22.
Small Talk
Many English students are more interested in making effective small talk than knowing correct grammar structures - and rightly so! Here are some tips to improve small talk skills.
Making Small Talk
Small Talk Lesson Plan
This section of the site is dedicated to small talk and social language for specific situations. Here are some of the situations you'll find.
Asking for Information
Apologizing in English
Asking People to Repeat
Expressing Sympathy
Getting People's Attention
Greeting People in English
Small Talk originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Wednesday, July 14th, 2010 at 09:12:20.
Sentence Transformations
Use behalf to change this sentence in 5 words or less to mean the same thing.
As the class representative I would like to welcome you.
Here's the quiz with the answer.
Try these 6 sentence transformation exercises.
Sentence Transformations originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Monday, July 12th, 2010 at 10:36:48.
Our Vacation in Greece
It's vacation time and this advanced level gap fill exercise fits this time of year perfectly. Fill the gaps in the letter with the appropriate form of the verb in parentheses, a preposition or another word. Most of the verbs are in a past tense as the letter speaks about vacation experiences in the past.
Here is a guide to the use of travel related words, as well as other words that describe various ways of getting around.
Our Vacation in Greece originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Friday, July 9th, 2010 at 08:08:08.
I had to grope / pat / nudge in the dark ...
The correct choice to the above headline is 'grope'. There are a number of very specific verbs which express various movements we make with our body. Try these four quizzes with follow-up answers to improve your knowledge of a number of these verbs.
I had to grope / pat / nudge in the dark ... originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Wednesday, July 7th, 2010 at 10:07:07.
Do or Make Explained
Do or Make? One of the most common problems for beginners and intermediate learners. They both have similar meanings, but there are differences. Here is a review sheet explaining the difference between the two verbs, providing key collocations and followed up by a quiz testing your knowledge.
Do or Make Explained originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Monday, July 5th, 2010 at 09:38:15.
Understanding Directions
It's summer and time for vacation. While traveling, you'll probably have to ask for directions. However, it's easy to become confused when listening to someone giving directions. This is true even in your own native language, so you can imagine how important it is to pay careful attention when listening to someone provide directions in English! Here are a few suggestions and tips to help you remember the directions as someone gives them to you. As well as a practice dialogue and suggestions on asking polite questions to help you along your way.
For beginning level learners, this basic guide to asking directions should help you get started.
For intermediate level learners, there's also this practice dialogue and follow-up quiz focusing on someone who has lost their way to the museum.
Understanding Directions originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Friday, July 2nd, 2010 at 13:38:59.
It's as easy as pie!
If you remain as calm as a cucumber, you'll find that it's as bad as all that. There are many idioms and expressions using 'as ... as' in English. Use this worksheet and quiz to help you understand these expressions. Each expression with 'as ... as' provides two examples as well as a quiz to check your understanding.
Use this guide to find all the idiom and expression resources on this site.
It's as easy as pie! originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Wednesday, June 30th, 2010 at 09:32:04.
How should I teach this class?
The art of picking and choosing your approach based on a student needs analysis. Includes an analysis of two example classes
There are also quite a few lesson plans on this site in a wide variety of categories. In order to help you find the lesson plan you need for your class, here are five collections of some of the most useful and popular ESL / EFL lesson plans on the site:
Top ESL Conversation Lessons Plans
Debate Lessons
Popular Lesson Plans
ESL Children's Games
Lesson Plans Focusing on Tenses and Verb Conjugation
How should I teach this class? originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Monday, June 28th, 2010 at 09:18:29.
Difference Between Of and From
Many English learners have difficulties understanding the difference between of and from in English.
This short guide to the differences between of and from in English should help you avoid English usage mistakes in the future.Other common problems include:
Good vs. WellBring, Take, Fetch, Get
Everyone / Every One
Everyday / Every Day
Whether / If
Enough
A Little, Little, A Few, Few
A Lot, Lots Of, A Lot Of
Female - Feminine / Male - Masculine
It's vs. Its
Two, Too, To
They're, Their, There
You're vs. Your
Confusing Words
Since vs. For
Have vs. Of in Conditionals
Has gone to vs. Has been to
Then vs. Than
Double Negatives
So do I, Neither did I
So ... that, such ... that
Both ... and, neither ... nor, either ... or
Difference Between Of and From originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Friday, June 25th, 2010 at 15:51:01.
Workplace Communication
Imagine you are speaking to a colleague at work. Which do you think would be a better way to ask for some help: Tom, could you give me a hand, please? or Mr. Ackerman, could I trouble you to help me for a moment? The choice between these two is a choice in register which is vital to good workplace communications.
In English, register is a key element in expressing degrees of formality. This article focuses on workplace communications and correct register use and gives examples for various situations.
Here are two quizzes on workplace communications and register use:
Identify the correct register
Choose the best statement for the situation
Workplace Communication originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Thursday, June 24th, 2010 at 13:11:43.
Conditional Forms Resources
What would you do, if you had more time to study? (example of the second, unreal conditional form)
This page is dedicated to helping both learners and teachers take advantage of all the resources related to all three conditional forms on this site. Resources include explanations, quizzes, free lesson plans, and activities all related to conditional forms.
Conditional Forms Resources originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010 at 09:01:57.
Teach English Abroad
The summer is here, and you've just finished college. Would you like to take a year off and teach English abroad? If so, Online TEFL Course provides an excellent opportunity to get a certificate online. I've had a chance to review the course and can highly recommend it. The i-to-i Online TEFL Course delivers the basics teachers of EFL or ESL need to know. It's ideal for those who have not studied education, but want to teach English abroad. For more details, check out the review.
If you or anyone you know is considering becoming an English teacher abroad, TEFL Uncovered by James Jenkin is a must have resource. This free download provides an exhaustive overview of the entire industry - from deciding to become a teacher, through teacher training to country by country work condition overviews.
Teach English Abroad originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Monday, June 21st, 2010 at 10:57:57.
Beginning Level Dictations
Short dictations are helpful for both listening and writing practice. Each of these beginning level dictations focuses on a specific learning point such as 'at the restaurant' or 'comparisons'. The dictations include five sentences. Each sentence is read twice with time to write down the answer.
Beginning Level Dictations originally appeared on About.com English as 2nd Language on Friday, June 18th, 2010 at 07:08:15.